I won’t question Saban’s motives, but it strikes me as a very smart recruiting move to lead the BLM march his team took on the Alabama campus. That’s particularly true when coaches like Leach, Gundy & others appear to be associating themselves against such things. I have no idea about Kiffin’s social position, but for several years the connection OM makes with its Confederate past has caused it some recruiting problems. I bet that’s more true today.
Pittman seems to be handling all this very well. Musselman too.
Pittman did attend a march in Fayetteville. Has Musselman made any such gestures or statements.? I am sure I could have missed it. I don’t read everything.
I thought Pittman delivered a Home Run on his response. He didn’t grandstand with a bunch of posts about it. He wanted to remain anonymous. He made it clear to his players he was there to support THEM and to make sure if things got out of hand he could get them out of harm’s way.
THAT is leadership. He didn’t take a position himself, he simply supports his players and is there to be with them.
Lincoln Riley at OU led his team on a march across campus last week. High-profile event. Maybe the next step is more high profile for Pittman, but I thought his deferring to the player’s was an astute move.
Smart move? Well, yes maybe from a recruiting standpoint, but this is Alabama–deep South. I’m told there are several AL alumni groups/members that are not too thrilled with this and are contemplating their appropriate action(s). Please players but not money givers?
It’s something of a dilemma for him, but he’s winning enough that he can get by with it. Bet it helps him with recruiting. He wins another NC & the alumni won’t care. Now let him go 6-4 a couple of years in a row & it’s another story.
Let too many Bama alums take a vocal stance against BLM & that alone might hurt recruiting down there. These may be football players, but they’re also young men who have views, especially about how they’re treated.
I have kept silent on this issue, for fear of stepping into politics. Because I have a viewpoint.
But regardless of MY viewpoint, I know one thing for sure. When you work with and push young people as hard as I do…or as hard as a COACH does…you HAVE to be sensitive to what your kids feel strongly about.
Like it or not, the BLM movement and the feeling that the young generation is going to impact racism in this country is real. All of my students support the Back Lives Matter movement. All of them. We have discussed it openly. Even kids that support Trump also support BLM. They see no contradiction.
So…middle aged and elderly fans had better understand that the kids that provide their entertainment on Saturdays and pour out their guts on the playing field for our schools and states have feelings. Those feelings need to be respected. Agree with them or not.
